Cyber bullying among children and youths is one of the problems which arise due to the use of social media. Cyber bullying refers to the use of electronic media especially the internet to threaten, intimidate and upset some one. It can come from friends in school or even online friends made in social media platform. This cyber bullying behavior has become a problem because it can lead to potentially adverse effects on the victims like psychological trauma and in the worse cases it has caused victims to commit suicide. Online bullying is especially prominent in Singapore. According to the study done by Microsoft in 2012, Singapore has the second highest rate of cyber bulling globally among children and youth between the ages of 8 and 17 (Baig, 2014). This study is conducted by asking children about negative experiences they have had online from their point of view such as being called mean names, being teased and etc. Similarly, Touch Cyber Wellness has done a survey on 1,900 primary school students and 3,000 secondary school pupils. It revealed that 1 in 3 of the latter population had been bullied online, while 1 in 4 surveyed admitted to having bullied their peers in the online sphere through social media platforms ( Baig, 2014). The trend in primary school is similar whereby 1 out of 5 students had been taunted on social media platforms. To curb this problem of cyber bullying, there are efforts taken by the government and private organizations.
One existing measures taken by the government is implementing the Harassment act in 2014 (Attorney-General’s Chambers, 2104). This new act would give more protection to the ordinary citizens including children who are using the internet in the form of punishments such as fine and custodial sentence depending on the severity of the offender’s action. While the act applies equally to children and youth, if a child between ages of 7 to 16 is convicted, he or she will be dealt with under the Children and Young Person Act (Tham & Hoe, 2014). This law ensures that everyone regardless of ages is accountable for the crimes committed online through social media platform or websites. However, the measure may not be effective as there is no guide line on ascertaining the identity of the anonymous offender. Thus the identity of the anonymous can only be trace if educators and profession who work with the youth are given the resources to do so. Furthermore, if the victim does not report the case of cyber bullying, there is no way to enforce this law. The offender may be just left unpunished and continue his wrongdoings. In addition, school bullying in the form of cyber bullying is a complex problem which cannot be adequately resolved through legislation. As the offenders might be young and immature, they may commit mistakes unknowingly due to poor judgment. Thus, the laws should be more lenient towards children.
In order to create awareness on cyberbully issue, private organization such as Touch Cyber wellness has been proactively educating children and teenagers on the consequences of using social media in a negative way and inspires them to use the Internet in positive ways (Touch Community Services, 2014). Furthermore, other organization such as Media Literacy Council has partnered with Facebook to provide new safety resources for teens, parents and teachers (Media Literacy Council, 2015). These includes important tools which gives them information on what they can do if they experience something upsetting, recommendations to adult who want to help, as well as guidance to the person accused on why they have upset someone and how they can make it better. Education on cyber awareness seems to be an effective method in bringing across the anti-bully message among the youths. However, there are still cases which can go unnoticed if the victims themselves do not seek help or do not know that they are being victimized. As cyberspace extends beyond the bounds of the school, parents have to be more cautious about their children’s online activities. Thus, it requires close cooperation between parents and schools to help identify children who are victims of cyber bullying so that appropriate steps can be taken.
A research was done on about 4500 Americans students in 2010 found that those students who felt their parents and schools were not dismissive of cyber-bullying and would punish them for such behavior were less likely to do so (Tan, 2013). The school can establish a form of a bullying prevention coordinating committee. This committee is in charge of developing school wide rules and sanctions against bullying, and events to raise school and community awareness about bullying. On the other hand, parents should instill moral values in their children like teaching them to be responsible for their own actions. Hence, Parents and schools play an important role in deterring cyber bullying behavior through instilling moral values in the young people and teaching them the proper behavior when using social media.
It is evident that cyber bullying is a growing issue in today’s society. Anonymity online can be misused to threaten and victimize the children and teenagers who use the internet often. With the implementation of the Harassment Act, offenders will be punished and it serves as a warning for those who have not been caught. Moreover, education and safety resources provided by non-profit organization can help to reduce the occurrence of cyber bullying cases. However, there has to be close cooperation between parents and school as they play important roles in monitoring the child’s behavior and instilling moral values in them. All in all, the preventive measures taken by the government, school and non-profit organization will help in countering cyber bullying in Singapore but they are not able to completely prevent the occurrence of it.
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References
Attorney-General’s Chambers. (2015).Protection From Harassment Act 2014. Singapore Statutes Online. Retrieved from http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/aol/search/display/view.w3p;page=0;query=DocId%3A%2207275b05-417a-4de5-a316-4c15606a2b8d%22%20Status%3Ainforce%20Depth%3A0;rec=0
Baig,N. (2014). 1 In 3 Students In Singapore Have Been Victims Of Cyberbullying. Retrieved from
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/1-3-students-singapore-victims-070013753.html
Tan,T. (2103). Tackle cyber-bullying in Singapore before it gets worse. Retrieved from http://yourhealth.asiaone.com/content/tackle-cyber-bullying-singapore-it-gets-worse/page/0/0
Tham, Y.C., Hoe, P.S. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/the-big-story/case-you-missed-it/story/how-far-does-harassment-bill-go-20140318
Touch Community Services. (2014). Youth Service Group. Touch Cyber Wellness. Retrieved from http://www.touch.org.sg/touch_cyber_wellness
Media Literacy Council. (2015). Press Release. Facebook and the media literacy council launch new safety resources for teens, parents and teachers in Singapore. Retrieved from http://www.medialiteracycouncil.sg/press-room/press-releases/Pages/BullyingPreventionCentre.aspx#sthash.eMhccH1Y.dpuf
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